Schoolboy Spencer Hurst, 15, drowns during dip with pals on hottest day of the year in THIRD death of this week’s heatwave

Spencer Hurst drowned last night while swimming with friends in a lake in the village of Pelsall

By John Shammas

21st June 2017,12:18 pm

Updated: 22nd June 2017,2:02 pm

A SCHOOLBOY became the third to lose his life while swimming last night during this week’s heatwave.

Cops and ambulance crews were called to the village of Pelsall, West Midlands, just after 7pm – with West Midlands Police confirming that a boy, named as Spencer Hurst, had died shortly after arriving at the scene.

A police spokesman said: “Emergency services are at Ryders Hayes Mear off Ryders Hayes Lane in Walsall where a teenage boy got into difficulty while swimming in the lake with friends around 7pm this evening.

“Sadly fire service colleagues recovered the 15-year-old’s body just over an hour later.

Heartbroken friends and family left flowers and boxing gloves at the scene

“Officers are currently with the boy’s family. Our thoughts and sympathies are with them.”

West Midlands Fire Service’s area commander Ben Brook, speaking after Spencer’s death, said: “This was a particularly distressing incident for everyone involved, not least family and friends of the teenager who were at the scene.

“Our thoughts and sympathies are with them all.

“On Monday, a 16-year-old boy died after going swimming in a reservoir in Rochdale.

“Both incidents serve as tragic reminders of the dangers of swimming in open water.

“We absolutely understand the temptation to swim, have fun and cool down during the heatwave, but we are asking people not to.

“It simply isn’t worth the risk nor the heartbreak for all involved when things go wrong.”

The lad, named on social media as Paul Lawson, got into trouble while swimming with pals at 6pm last night at the Greenbooth Reservoir beauty spot.

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His body was recovered later by police frogmen called to search underwater.

Pal Thuba Mlambo said online: “Can’t believe what I’m hearing another beautiful soul taken from this world far too soon, RIP Paul Lawson fly high with the angels, got many happy memories that I will forever cherish.”

A bikini-clad paddle boarder makes the most of the weather in Worthing, West Sussex, as the heatwave continues today

Writing in the Times, Dr Mark Porter said there could be 400 deaths due to the heatwave this week, based on what happened in the summer of 2006.

Many will be due to heart attacks, strokes and breathing problems in the hot weather.

NHS figures suggest there will be 75 additional deaths a week for every degree the temperature rises above 25C.

Dr Porter says common drugs used to treat hay fever and depression inhibit sweating while medicine for high blood pressure can cause dehydration and make the kidneys work harder, creating a “vicious circle”.

The heart also has to work harder in the hot weather, while air pollution is worse in a heatwave causing breathing problems.

The doctor said sweating is essential to regulate our body temperature in very hot weather “and anything that impedes that can have serious repercussions”.

He wrote: “Lots of things affect our ability to perspire, ranging from the obvious (such as inappropriate clothing and dehydration) to the surprising (certain medicines).

“Young children, who have higher metabolic rates and sweat less, and the elderly, who start to lose fine control of thermoregulation as they age and are likely to be on lots of pills, are most vulnerable to heat, but we are all at risk.”